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Collapsing Eiffel Tower or a Paris Rooftop scene? If you watched G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, you could see just that and more. Even though the set looked like it was located in Paris and other geographical locations, it was actually carefully designed in Prague. The motion picture is just another movie that was filmed in the Czech Republic, but one of the characters was played by the Czech supermodel and actress Karolina Kurkova, who is now expecting her first child with her fiancé Archie Drury. Many Czechs and Slovaks may not be familiar with this “Real American Hero” that has such long history in the American culture. Why the Czech Republic and who is G.I. Joe then? We will try to answer these questions and show you some interesting videos from behind the scenes and from the past of this action figure.

The Czech Republic is a popular location for Hollywood films, but it is becoming more and more expensive now. For example, the third sequel of the Narnia Chronicles, unlike the first two, was not filmed in the Czech Republic but in Mexico instead. Even Budapest is about ¼ of the price of Prague. Nevertheless, the Barrandov Studios in Prague, named after French paleontologist Joachim Barrande, are still attracting American and other filmmakers for its Hollywood-like abilities. Today, it contains the largest soundstage in Europe (4,000 square meters in area and 14 meters high) and employs skilled film professionals that played key roles in making many Czech and international films since 1931. In the last ten years it produced dozens of notable american films, which include Dungeons & Dragons (2000), The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (2002), The Illusionist (2006), Casino Royale (2006) and more. For more information about Czech movies or movies made in the Czech Republic CLICK HERE.

So who is G.I. Joe? Today, it is more than just a toy. Originally it was created as a doll for boys to compete with the Barbie dolls. The first G.I. Joe was created in 1963 by the toy manufacturer Hasbro. The Barbie-sized dolls (11 ½ in. tall), representing figures like “Rocky the Marine,” “Skip the Sailor,” and “Ace the Pilot”, were inspired by the popular 1945 film “The Story of G.I. Joe,” thus G.I. Joe emerged. By the late 1960s the military theme was replaced by the “Adventure Team” and was followed by other themes as well. By the 1980s the size of the dolls decreased to 3 ¾ inch scale and depicted the Star Wars figures. The smaller size allowed the manufacturer to make vehicles and other accessories to go with the toys. They were accompanied by posters, video games and t-shirts and they also appeared in comics, cartoons and now in a movie as well. G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, directed by Stephen Sommers, embodies the action figures and concepts of movies, such as Transformers, Mission Impossible and X-Men.

Surfing the Internet, we were able to find some interesting video clips about this movie. First, you had the chance to see the original toy line advertisement followed by the cartoon snapshot and cast introduction. Below you can find some amateur videos depicting dangerous scenes filmed in the Czech Republic. It is incredible to watch how many cars and other objects get destroyed during movie filming. Enjoy!

Great stuff! I am actually really looking forward to this. Used to watch GI Joe as a kid. Though of course it was called “Action Force” over here, and the tag was “International Heroes”
—-Brainwave Entrainment